Electrically-controlled valve



(ModeL) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2. J V STOUT ELBOTRIGALLY CONTROLLED VALVE.

No. 448,273. Patented Mar. 17, 1891.

q vi/bnaaoao (ModeL), 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

J. V. STOUT.

ELEOTRIGALLY CONTROLLED VALVE.

No. 448,273. Patented Mar. 17, 1891.

THE warns vnirzs 20., PHQ nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn c4 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN Y. STOUT, OF FASTON, PENNSYLVANIA.

ELECTRICALLY-CONTROLLED VALVE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 448,273, dated March 17, 1891.

Application filed January 31, 1890. Serial No- 338,'76Z. (ModcL) To ctZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JOHN V. STOUT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Easton, in the county of Northampton and State of Pennsylvania, have invented an Electrical Controlling Apparatus for lempcrature, &c., of which the following is a specification.

My invent-ion relates to that class of devices in which a thermostatic circuit-closer is placed at thcpoint where it is desired to keep the temperature within certain limits, said circuitcloser being in the circuit leading to a magnet controlling the heating medium.

My invention is, however, not confined to this particular use, since it may be applied in other ways, as will be'hereinaftcr described.

The object of my invention is to provide a circuit controller, whereby the danger of waste of the battery is avoided and the operation is rendered certain, and, further, to provide a simple and e'fficient arrangement of circuits for operating the system, all as fully hereinafter set forth.

In the aceompanyin g drawings, which ill ustrate my invention, Figure l is a general view of the system. Fig. 2 is a front view of the circuit-controller with parts broken away. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the circuit-controller. Fig. '1 is a modified form of circuiteontroller, and Figs. 5 and 6 are details thereof.

The apparatus shown at the left of Fig. l is placed at a point the temperature of which is to be controlled. The apparatus shown at the right of Fig. l is placed adjacent to the heatlag-furnace, steam-pipe, or other heating device.

The main circuit E E contains a battery It or other source of current-supply, preferably, though not necessarily, located near the heating apparatus, and three magnets in series. This circuit is normally open at the thermostatic circuit-controller. One of the magnets A A is located adjacent to the motor which moves the valve in the heating apparatus, and serves to move the detent which releases fly 1 of said motor. The other two magnets are located at the thermostat.

B is a propelling-magnet for ratehet-wheel 2, which wheel is operatively connected with the contact-plate 3 and turns the same. S is the armature of said magnet, and T an extension thereof carrying a pawl 4-. The third magnet 0' C or one coil thereof, is preferably of high resistance, with its armature closely adjusted to the poles, whereby the armature is attracted instantly when the circuit is closed. The armature M of this magnet when in its forward or attracted position closes a shunt around the thermostatic contact, which is as follows: from the main line through the armature M, core of the magnet, coil 0, wire 0, magnet B, to line E. The closure of this circuit has the effect of preventing the burning of the contact at the thermostat, and at the same time removes the resistance of coil 0 from the line. Itwill be understood that coil C will hold the armature attracted.

The circuit-controller comprises a bar J, composed of two metals of dilierent expansibility, or a similar device terminating in contacts K L, and a co-operatin g plate 3, provided with contacts G ll 1, arranged symmetricallythat is, one hundred and twenty degrees apart, or with any other odd number of contacts. This controller is more fully illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, to which reference is made. In addition to the parts described in connection with Fig. l,this circuit-controller is provided with a detent or regulator for the motor, as shown at 5, which consists in a wing or projection on an arbor of the clock-work. This win g is normally held by the stop 6, which is carried by an extension of the armature-lever T, and which rests in front of said wing and holds the same. Said stop 0 also projects below the axis of the arbor carrying the detent 5. It will be seen that on the forward movement of lever T stop 6 moves away from the arbor carryin wing At the same time pawl -l engages with a succeeding tooth in wheel 2. \Yhon, now, the circuit is broken, armature S and lever T will. be retracted by the spring attached thereto and pawl 4 will turn the mechanism. one space. 'lhis'backward movement brings stop 6 to its original position, but not until wing 5 has passed by it in the direction of the arrow shown. It is, however, in its normal position before said wing makes a complete revolution. In this way the wing is always stopped at the same point and the circuit-plate is moved a sixth of a revolution (when three contacts are used) at each forward and backward movement of the armature.

' A further advantage of the above-described arrangement of stop 6 is that the wing and arbor serve as an eflicient back-stop for the armature-lever T. 11 is a spring or pawl for preventing a reverse movement of wheel 2. It will be seen that the device I have just described serves as a lock to positively hold the controlling-plate 3 in its operative position.

I will now describe the modified form of controller illustrated in Figs. 4:, 5, and 6.

In Fig. 4,J is the thermostatic bar or other expansible device, terminating in an electrical contact-point and connected to one of the wires E of the main circuit. 11 I are armature-levers terminating in co-operating contact-points, and are connected to the shuntmagnets D E, as shown. These magnets are so constructed that their armatures when attracted come in contact with the cores and close shunt-circuits around the thermostatic contacts, as already described. One of said shunt-circuits is as follows: wire E, through magnet B, Wire g, magnet E, wire t', armature k, magnet cores, wire a to the other main wire E, thus shunting the thermostatic contact whenJ and H are in contact. In the position shown in Fig. 4 the contact carried by lever H is in the path of movement of J it travels away from the observer, and the contact of lever I is out of the path of movement of J when it moves toward the observer, howfarsoever it may move. It will also be seen that a projection V on the end of lever I engages with a block L, carried by the lever H, and looks it in its forward position against the tension of its retracting-spring. hen now the circuit is closed between J and H, the armature of magnet B will be attracted to the pole unlocking the other lever and allowing its retracting-spring to move it to the position shown in Fig. 6. In this position the block L holds lever I in its forward position against the force of its retracting-spring. It thus appears that one of the contacts is in the path of movement of the expansible bar, while the other is entirely out of the path of movement thereof, and that the contact-lever which is out of the path of movement locks the other contact-lever in its forward position.

Fig. 5 shows a plan view of the expansible bar and the cooperating contact-points with the front plate of the apparatus removed. The contact-poin ts are shown adjustable and provided with lock-nuts. I have shaded the contact-arm at the right to indicate that it is in a difierent position or plane from that of the contact at the left.

With the circuitcontrolling apparatus which I have described I employ but one circuit and source of current-supply both for the opening and the closing of the valve, and this circuit is continuous except at the circuitcontroller.

I will now describe the operation of my apparatus.

The system being in its normal condition, as shown in Fig. 1, suppose the temperature rises so as to throw contact K on barJ against contact H. The armature M is immediately attracted, thereby closing the shunt around the thermostatic contact for the protection of said contact, and at the same time removing the resistance of coil 0 which may be the v coil of higher resistance, from the main line. Simultaneously with the above operation, or practically so, is. the energization of magnet A A whereby the detent 1 of the motor adj acent to the regulating apparatus is released.

It will be understood that magnetB alsoattracts its armature on the closure of the circuit, as-above already described. \Vhen, now, the contact F, which is preferably mounted on the same shaft with the disk 9, but in a different vertical plane, is brought into contact with a spring E, magnets 15 C C are provided with a short circuit, as follows: From battery to wire 9, spring E, plate F, frame of the clock-work, Wire f, magnet A A to the other pole of the battery. \Vhen this circuitis established,magnet Bis de-energized and its armature and armature-lever are attracted, as already described, moving plate3 one-sixth of a. revolution and breaking the contact at H K. At the same time 0 is deenergized, (by the short-circuiting of the battery,) allowing its armature to drop, opening the shunt therethrough. Disk 9 and plate F continue to revolve until F passes out of contact with spring E, and the second notch in disk 9 comes under the lower arm 8, when said arm drops into the notch andthe upper arm engages with the detent, stopping the clockwork. The crank-arm and valve-lever now being in an elevated position and the valve closed, the system is in condition to operate in substantially the way above described to open the valve when the temperature shall fall sufficiently to bring contact L against contact G in the opposite movement of the thermostatic bar.

In this form of apparatus the shunt through armature M, although advantageous, is not absolutely necessary. If-omitted, the wire from plate 3 would be connected directly to magnet B, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 1.

J instead of being a thermostatic bar may be the tube of an ordinary pressure-gage, or

any other similar device, which moves inone I and co operating contacts, said revolnble plate in combination with a mechanical motor for operating the same and the magnet and detent for controlling the motor, together with certain other features, and those things are disclaimed in this application.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure, is

1. The combination, in a regulating system, of a circuit and a normally-open circuit-controller, a battery and magnetsin series in the circuit, one of said magnets operating the circuit-controller and another of said magnets controlling the motor for the regulatingvalve, and a short circuit for the battery, substantially as described.

2. The combination, in a regulating system, of a circuit,a battery,a circuit-controller,and magnets in series, one of said magnets being of higher resistance, and a shunt closed by its armature cutting out one coil thereof and shunting the contact of the circuit-controller, substantially as described.

The combination, in a regulating system, of an expansible device provided with electrical contact points, movable cooperating contacts, a propelling-magnet and armature therefor carrying a propelling-pawl, and a ratchct-wheel operatively connected to said movable contacts, substantially as described.

i. The combination, in a regulatingsystem, of an expansiiole device provided with electrical contactpoints, movable co-operat-ing contacts, a propelling-magnet, armature, pawl, and a detent or regulator, said armature having an extension terminating adjacent to and normally bearing against the deteu t, snbstantially as described.

5. The combination,in a circuitcontrollcr, of an expansible member connected to the circuit and terminating in a contact-point, 00- operating contacts movable into and out of the path of movement of said expansible memher, and a locking device for retaining the same in its set position, substantially as described.

6. The combination, in a step-by-step device, of a pr0pellingmagnet, armature, pawl, and a detent or regulator, the pawl operating on suitable gearing,said armaturebeing provided with an extension terminating adjacent to and in front of the detent, whereby said extension serves as a stop forsaid detent,allowing but one revolution for each movement of the armature, and said detent serves as a back-stop for said armature, substantially as described.

7. The combination, in a regulating system, of an expansible device connected to a circuitterininal, a co-operating contact connected to another terminal, a valve, a motor for open ing and closing the same, a controlling-magnet therefor, and a single circuit and source of current-supply embracing said terminals and the motor-controlling magnet, substantially as described.

This specification signed and witnessed this 29th day of January, 1890.

JOHN V. STOUT.

Witnesses;

OHARLEs M. CATLIN, W. PELZER, 

